Staffan Olsson’s Netherlands pressured Denmark for a half.
Then Denmark shifted gears and pulled away.
The reigning world champions eventually won 39-27.
– We are doing fantastic offensively, says star Mikkel Hansen.
The day before yesterday, the Netherlands kept pace with Sweden throughout the match when the first group stage ended. It took three straight saves by Andreas Palicka in the final minutes of the match for Sweden to win the match.
When the intermediate round began on Wednesday, the Netherlands, coached by Staffan Olsson, faced tough opposition in the form of reigning world champions Denmark.
At first it looked like it would be at least as gas-hugging as the match against Sweden. The Netherlands and Denmark traded goals with each other in the first half.
After 30 minutes played, Denmark led by one ball, 18-17.
Danish overrun in the second half
Once the second half started, the picture of the match was different. Niklas Landin Jacobsen again completely nailed the Danish goal, while Denmark continued to pour goals forward.
Staffan Olsson tried to rouse his team with a timeout when Denmark led 27-22, but to no avail. Denmark ran away even more and finally won with a crushing 39-27.
The Danes won the second half by a whopping 21-10.
– We have a fantastic team, says Mads Mensah Larsen.
With the win, Denmark takes a step towards going to the EC semi-finals, while the Netherlands’ chances of doing the same are greatly reduced.
In the next match, the Netherlands face a struggling Norway. Denmark faces Sweden in turn.